1977 · Album
From Me to You
Recorded 1977 · Paramount Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California · Epic Records
A Keyboardist Plants His Flag at Epic
Duke's first statement for Epic Records, built on the backs of serious session players and a producer unafraid of ensemble clutter.
From Me to You marks George Duke's debut for Epic Records, a label shift that gave him room to assemble something more deliberately collaborative than his work had been. By this point in his career, Duke had already built a reputation as a keyboardist who could navigate fusion, funk, and soul without choosing a lane — and this album proves that eclecticism was a feature, not a liability.
The session brought together a genuine all-star crew. Stanley Clarke on bass, Leon "Ndugu" Chancler on drums, Michael Sembello on guitar, and Ernie Watts on saxophone give the rhythm section real heft, while Emil Richards handles percussion and Glenn Ferris adds trombone weight. Dianne Reeves' vocals anchor several tracks with a clarity that cuts through the layered arrangements. Duke himself sits at the keyboard center, not dominating so much as orchestrating — letting the room breathe.
The album isn't a masterpiece, and critics have been measured in their response. What it is, though, is proof that Duke understood something important about working with other musicians: that a strong ensemble can make a producer sound smarter. The Paramount Recording Studios sessions produced something cohesive enough to work as a statement without feeling overwrought. It's a solid opening move for a new label partnership, the kind of album that established Duke as someone worth paying attention to beyond the fusion circuit.
Who's playing
Stanley Clarkeacoustic bass guitar
Byron Millerbass
Michael Sembelloguitar
Bobby Branttrumpet
Walt Fowlertrumpet
Glenn Ferristrombone
Lew McCrearytrombone
William Greenflute
Where next?
More by George Duke
All 29 albums →
The musicians on this record
Their own records, close in time
